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Saturday, December 10, 2011

Sotheby’s jewelry auctions achieved $30.4 million in New York yesterday, 7 December. The day began with the ‘white glove’ sale – 100% sold – of The Elegant John Traina – A Portrait in Style, which more than tripled its pre-sale high estimate of $570,000 in bringing $1,921,755. The following auction of Magnificent Jewels totaled $28,477,500, led by top prices for white diamonds, natural pearls, sapphires and emeralds.

“As has been the case throughout our recent auctions, yesterday’s sales saw persistent demand and strong results for unique and signed jewels,” commented Lisa Hubbard, Co-Chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewelry department, and Gary Schuler, Head of Sotheby’s Jewelry department in New York.

“The one-of-a-kind Platinum and Diamond Sautoir Necklace by Cartier sold for $1,650,500, above a high estimate of $1 million, while exceptional white diamonds and natural pearls brought top prices throughout the day. Though we are disappointed to have not found buyers yesterday for our top two stones amongst the rarified group of collectors at the highest end of our market, the results for the remainder of the sale demonstrate a continued demand for pieces of quality and unique character.”

Auction Results:

Sale N08805 The Elegant John Traina A Portrait in Style 07 DEC 11

Grand Total: $1,921,755 (£1,230,002) Exch Rate: 0.64

Sold by Lot: 100.0% Lots Offered: 92

Sold by Value: 100.0% Lots Sold/Unsold: 92 / 0

LOT 43 PAIR OF 18 KARAT GOLD AND RUBY CUFFLINKS, SCHLUMBERGER FOR TIFFANY & CO., AND RUBY AND DIAMOND STUDS, DAVID WEBBThe cufflinks set with cabochon rubies, signed Tiffany, Schlumberger; the three studs set in the centers with cabochon rubies, accented by small round diamonds, mounted in 18 karat gold, signed Webb.

PROPERTY FROM A PROMINENT AMERICAN FAMILY A MAGNIFICENT PLATINUM AND DIAMOND SAUTOIR NECKLACE WITH LAVALLIERE PENDANT, CARTIER, NEW YORK, 1924Designed as a series of openwork oval and bell-shaped links set with 13 old European-cut and cushion-shaped diamonds weighing approximately 37.75 carats, centering a larger cushion-shaped diamond weighing approximately 4.65 carats, supporting a lavalliere pendant set with 7 cushion-shaped and old European-cut diamonds weighing approximately 37.05 carats, length 15½ inches, signed Cartier, numbered 2419263; together with a length extender of a later date set with 13 cushion-shaped and old European-cut diamonds weighing approximately 22.30 carats, length 12¼ inches, separated into three segments, the necklace and length extender further set with smaller old mine and single-cut diamonds weighing approximately 18.60 carats.

Lapponia Jewelry is undergoing a global renaissance. Today's strong women want to express themselves with our beautiful designs. Lapponia Jewelry is inspired by the rugged nature of northern Finland. This close bond with the nature of the north is brought to life in our new brand experience, the Art of Expression video, and our overall marketing strategy, The Silent Language of Nature.

View the Multimedia News Release:

The Lapponia brand video combines stunning images of northern nature with another source of Finnish pride, the internationally renowned musical talent of the band Apocalyptica and their song Sacra. The video tells the story of Lapponia's origins, presenting the artists' source of inspiration for those who have never had the opportunity to experience the exotic beauty of northern Finland.

Lapponia's artistic nature is also highlighted throughout our other marketing activities. During the filming of the brand video, world-famous photographer Arno Rafael Minkkinen, currently a professor of visual arts at the University of Boston, began work on a set of beautiful art photos based on Lapponia's 'silent language' marketing concept. This cooperation resulted in a collection of pictures that visualizes Lapponia's message in a truly beautiful way. In terms of communication, the campaign clearly differs from the way other luxury brands express themselves. And when it comes to timing, the campaign launch couldn't be happening at a better time, with Helsinki serving as World Design Capital for 2012.

About LapponiaLapponia's story began when the company's visionary founder Pekka Anttila asked sculptor and jewelry designer Björn Weckström, who he met while training to be a goldsmith, to design the first pieces of what was, at the time, very unique jewelry. The roots of Lapponia design are in Finnish Lapland. On trips to Lapland, Weckström got inspired by the exceptional shape and surface of the gold nuggets found in rivers there. It was this inspiration that led him to design the Flowering Wall, which received a Grand Prix award at the 1965 International Jewelry Contest in Rio de Janeiro. Since then, Lapponia has been an international success. Later Björn Weckström became fascinated by silver and created a series of jewelry in which silver portrays Finland's snowy fields and icy lakes. The exceptional treatment of the surface became the label of Lapponia's distinguished design.The unique design and the exotic arctic nature began to generate more and more international interest. Lapponia grew into a brand that knew no boundaries. It was loved by royalty and stars alike, from the shahzadi of Persia to Yoko Ono. Following this success, in the 1970s Lapponia's jewelry was being designed by several international jewelry artists.

Lapponia's mystical designs still captivate people across the world. Today, Lapponia has six visionary artists who draw inspiration from the nature of Lapland to fulfill Lapponia's mission of creating revolutionary pieces of jewelry in the otherwise conservative world of jewels. This jewelry is worn by charismatic women who are not afraid to stand out from the crowd.

Exclusive new pieces integrate fine jewelry adornments and offer a new distinctive choice to men looking for an important personality statement.

Today, William Henry presented its first offerings designed and created with gemstone pave settings. These new pieces represent an important step for the American brand renowned for its distinctive collections of functional jewelry. The new models, developed in partnership with jewelry designer Scott Keating, add an original and seductive message to William Henry’s existing collections, and represent a new and exclusive offering in the often overlooked world of jewelry for men.

All the patterns on William Henry’s new bejeweled models are created by hand, and hand set in pave with extensive microscopic work. The gemstones used include white, brown and black diamonds, blue and yellow sapphires, and rubies.

Initially, Scott Keating’s designs and setting work will be used on some of the brand’s most exclusive pocketknives. Later in 2012, these gem settings will be also used to create new offerings of writing instruments, money clips and golf tools, conferring a new and original appeal to the brand’s most exclusive collections.

William Henry will start selling the new pieces at the end of the first quarter of 2012, making them available online and through the brand’s network of authorized retailers in the US and abroad.

“Our limited edition collections are always infused with a distinctive and meaningful message” – Says Matt Conable, founder and creative engine of the company. “It can be imbued in a rare and exotic material such as fossil Mammoth tooth or meteorite, or in the outstanding craftsmanship of an engraver or a koftgari artisan. The design and gem-setting artistry of Scott Keating will add a sparkling and precious new layer to our most exclusive offerings”

A Winner of multiple awards for his jewelry creations, and with customers of the caliber of Jack Nicholson and Jimmy Buffett, Scott Keating is one of the most respected independent jewelry designers in the US. Nature is probably the single most important source of inspiration for his work.

“I love the contrast between the sparkle of gems and the sheen understated look of organic and fossil materials” – Says Keating. "I find inspiration in earth metals and stones, and adding my love of jewelry making translates the work into functional art."

This shared respect for natural proportions and the use of natural organic materials make William Henry and Scott Keating perfect partners.

“I’ve always admired Scott Keating’s creations and I’m thrilled to be able to offer him our superb collections as a canvas for his beautiful work” – says Conable.

About William Henry

William Henry is an American luxury brand devoted to the vision of designing and creating superlative functional jewelry. Designer and entrepreneur Matt Conable founded the company in 1997 and is now the sole owner. Conable first established the brand creating exclusive and award-winning pocketknives, effectively transforming the archetype of all tools into a superb piece of functional jewelry for men. Today’s collections include writing instruments, money clips, and golf tools.

The seamless integration of classic natural materials, precious metals & gemstones, and state-of-the-art alloys is a hallmark of William Henry’s work. The brand creates limited editions only, and no two pieces are ever replicas. William Henry’s collections are available on its website and through a select network of authorized retailers in the US and abroad.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Jewelry Television Launches New Website

Jewelry shopping network develops new site to make shopping experience even easier

Jewelry Television® (JTV), the largest broadcast shopping network focused exclusively on the sale of fine jewelry and gemstones, announced the launch of a new website design at http://www.jtv.com. The new site will make Jewelry Television’s already user-friendly shopping experience even easier for customers.

The new website, completed in-house by JTV’s e-commerce team, features a wider format that allows for large, high-resolution images and videos of jewelry and gemstones, enhanced graphics which are visually appealing, and clearly-labeled tabs for improved navigation. Pages of the site work intuitively and consistently, while new search capabilities allow online jewelry shoppers a way to more quickly and easily find what they are seeking.

“We are committed to providing an exceptional customer experience,” said Craig Shields, vice president of e-commerce at Jewelry Television. “The new website was designed to be informative and very simple for our customers to navigate.”

Mobile users have the option of a fully mobile enhanced web experience will all the functions and features of the full site, from the convenience of their mobile devices.

“The user-friendly website also allows our customers to leave reviews on their purchase or read unbiased reviews before they make the purchase,” he said. “We hope that our customers will enjoy browsing the new site and that it will enhance their experience with JTV.”

About Jewelry Television®Jewelry Television® (JTV) is the only broadcast shopping network that focuses exclusively on the sale of fine jewelry and gemstones. The privately-held company was founded in 1993 and broadcasts high definition programming 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to over 80 million unique households in the U.S. Jewelry Television® was recently ranked the 14th largest retailer of fine jewelry in the U.S. by National Jeweler. JTV.com is the fifth largest jewelry destination on the internet according to Internet Retailer’s Top 500 Guide for 2010. For more information, visit JTV.com.

Not only did Carrie look gorgeous while co hosting the CMA'S, she was able to support a good cause at the same time by wearing diamonds from Royal Asscher's Stars of Africa Collection. Well known for her conscious, and cruelty free attitude towards fashion, Carrie jumped at the opportunity to support The Diamond Empowerment Fund and Royal Asscher'suse of non-conflict diamonds.

About ROYAL ASSCHER:Royal Asscher was established in 1854 in the Netherlands and has had a very influential presence in the diamond industry. The company cut the world's largest diamond to date, (3105 carats) and also has been awarded the title "Royal" two times from Queen Juliana of the Netherlands for being the top in the industry. Royal Asscher has provided jewelry to Royals for over a century now including Queen Elizabeth II and the Late Princess Diana. Recently a more contemporary collection with a charitable tie-in was created called ‘Stars of Africa’. The collection represents one of the greatest innovations in the jewelry industry- floating diamonds! Diamonds which are encased in a fluid filled dome move around freely which creates an effect that is utterly mesmerizing. Royal Asscher’s beautiful modern twist on traditional diamond design is also helping to rebuild Africa, which gives each piece an underlying beauty as well. Royal Asscher refuses to work with conflict diamonds that originate from war torn countries and are unethically sourced and sold to fund warfare and civil destruction. Royal Asscher only sources diamonds from nations that are fully compliant with the Kimberly Process, an international diamond industry initiative to stop the flow of conflict diamonds.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

At the discretion of the judges, up to three winners in each category or division will be awarded trophies. Honorable Mentions may also be awarded a certificate. All entries will automatically be considered for Best of Show, Best Use of Color and Best Use of Pearls. Winners will be awarded a "Best of" trophy.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Global Witness today wrote to the Chair of the Kimberley
Process to announce its withdrawal as an official Observer. Global Witness
first exposed the problem of blood diamonds in 1998 and played a key role in
establishing the Kimberley Process. The KP is a government-led rough diamond
certification scheme launched in 2003, which requires member states to pass
national legislation and set up an import/export control system for diamonds.
Over 75 of the world's diamond producing, trading and manufacturing countries
participate in the scheme. Global Witness has been an official Observer in the
Kimberley Process since 2003 and a member of the KP Civil Society Coalition.
Global Witness will continue to work with NGOs in the Civil Society Coalition
to reform the diamond sector.

Global Witness today announced that it has left the Kimberley Process, the international certification scheme established to stop the trade in blood diamonds.

The Kimberley Process’s refusal to evolve and address the clear links between diamonds, violence and tyranny has rendered it increasingly outdated, said the group. Despite intensive efforts over many years by a coalition of NGOs, the scheme’s main flaws and loopholes have not been fixed and most of the governments that run the scheme continue to show no interest in reform.

“Nearly nine years after the Kimberley Process was launched, the sad truth is that most consumers still cannot be sure where their diamonds come from, nor whether they are financing armed violence or abusive regimes” said Charmian Gooch, a Founding Director of Global Witness. “The scheme has failed three tests: it failed to deal with the trade in conflict diamonds from Côte d’Ivoire, was unwilling to take serious action in the face of blatant breaches of the rules over a number of years by Venezuela and has proved unwilling to stop diamonds fuelling corruption and violence in Zimbabwe. It has become an accomplice to diamond laundering – whereby dirty diamonds are mixed in with clean gems.”

In a shocking move, the Kimberley Process recently authorised exports from two companies operating in the controversial Marange diamond fields in Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean army seized control of the area in 2008, killing around 200 miners. Mining concessions were then granted in legally questionable circumstances to several companies, some of them associated with senior figures in Robert Mugabe’s Zanu PF party. Newspapers have reported that the Zimbabwean Central Intelligence Organisation, the state security service aligned with Mugabe whose members are accused of committing acts of violence against opposition supporters, directly benefits from off-budget diamond revenues.

“Over the last decade, elections in Zimbabwe have been associated with the brutal intimidation of voters. Orchestrating this kind of violence costs a lot of money. As the country approaches another election there is a very high risk of Zanu PF hardliners employing these tactics once more and using Marange diamonds to foot the bill. The Kimberley Process’s refusal to confront this reality is an outrage,” Gooch continued.

“Consumers should not buy Marange diamonds, and industry should not supply them,” said Gooch. “All existing contracts in the Marange fields should be cancelled and retendered with terms of reference which reflect international best practice on revenue sharing, transparency, oversight by and protection of the affected communities.”

The diamond industry should be required to demonstrate that the diamonds it sells are not fuelling abuses – by complying with international standards on minerals supply chain controls, including independent third party audits and regular public disclosure. Governments must show leadership by putting these standards into law.

“Consumers have a right to know what they’re buying, and what was done to obtain it,” added Gooch. “The diamond industry must finally take responsibility for its supply chains and prove that the stones it sells are clean.”

Source: Global Witness Press Release

For an informed decision, here are some information resources regarding the Kimberley Process: